skmcconnell361
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since August 2023
Posts: 125 
|
Post by skmcconnell361 on Aug 21, 2023 13:50:07 GMT -5
Here is my first tumble batch, I started out with the instructions that came with the National Geographic Hobby Tumbler. I thought that $69 was a good price for the tumbler and the 2 1/2 pounds of rocks. When this arrived I found the Tumbler with 1/2 pound of rocks and one pound each Gemstone and Jasper mix refills. What is picture is the 1/2 pound rocks that was package with the tumbler.  It was during week 2 when I discovered Nat Geo really did not provide enough grit for good results. So I ordered the bulk grit set from Nat Geo. Then I found out I should have some ceramic pellets and ordered a batch. Step 2 was nearly complete when I came across Michigan Rocks review of the Professional Tumbler. A little discourage by the results he got but I decided to press on and lowered my expectations. For step 3 I added the ceramic pellets and the grit and set timer for 7 days. Two days into step 4 the Hobby Tumbler quit and all lights was flashing. After several attempts failed to get things going again I dump the barrel cleaned and reloaded the barrel and put it on my new Harbor Freight dual barrel tumbler. After noting the slower speed of this tumbler, I decided to let this run for the full 10 days before checking on the rocks. The above Picture is at the end of the 10 days and boy was I surprised to find some of the rock actually had a shine to them. Sorry Jugglerguy LOL. Nat Geo did give me a replacement tumbler with another half pound of rocks and that geo foam stuff. |
|
|
|
Post by velodromed on Aug 21, 2023 14:52:13 GMT -5
Here is my first tumble batch, I started out with the instructions that came with the National Geographic Hobby Tumbler. I thought that $69 was a good price for the tumbler and the 2 1/2 pounds of rocks. When this arrived I found the Tumbler with 1/2 pound of rocks and one pound each Gemstone and Jasper mix refills. What is picture is the 1/2 pound rocks that was package with the tumbler. It was during week 2 when I discovered Nat Geo really did not provide enough grit for good results. So I ordered the bulk grit set from Nat Geo. Then I found out I should have some ceramic pellets and ordered a batch. Step 2 was nearly complete when I came across Michigan Rocks review of the Professional Tumbler. A little discourage by the results he got but I decided to press on and lowered my expectations. For step 3 I added the ceramic pellets and the grit and set timer for 7 days. Two days into step 4 the Hobby Tumbler quit and all lights was flashing. After several attempts failed to get things going again I dump the barrel cleaned and reloaded the barrel and put it on my new Harbor Freight dual barrel tumbler. After noting the slower speed of this tumbler, I decided to let this run for the full 10 days before checking on the rocks. The above Picture is at the end of the 10 days and boy was I surprised to find some of the rock actually had a shine to them. Sorry Jugglerguy LOL. Nat Geo did give me a replacement tumbler with another half pound of rocks and that geo foam stuff. You can fix that broken tumbler easy by bypassing the circuit board and wiring the motor direct to the power supply plug. Another guy on here figured out you can replace the 12v, 1a power supply with a lower power one to slow the tumbler to proper speed. $7.50 on Amazon. I got a 9V, 1a power plug and it works well. I did a thread on it, ‘Taking apart a 3 speed tumbler and fixing it’. It’s under the rock tumble section. It was surprisingly easy. Then you’d have 2 tumblers to play with. Check out the rock shed and Kingsley north for grit and polish, you’ll get better results. I tried so many different Amazon and cheap grits with poor results before I tried the better ones. A 7v, 1a is even slower, but it seemed too slow. |
|
skmcconnell361
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since August 2023
Posts: 125
|
Post by skmcconnell361 on Aug 21, 2023 16:59:53 GMT -5
Check out the rock shed and Kingsley north for grit and polish, you’ll get better results. I tried so many different Amazon and cheap grits with poor results before I tried the better ones. A 7v, 1a is even slower, but it seemed too slow. I saw, that, or one similar to it, I did get a variable power supply for the broken one, I will try that at about 9v before bypassing the circuit board. I also found on this forum what the flashing lights mean and what to look for other than an overloaded barrel, it turns out that the broken tumbler had a burr on both of the pulleys so I took an emery board to it to smooth it out. I also ordered some replacement belts and they seem to fit better than the two belts that came with the tumbler. I already ordered 3lb of Aluminum Oxide Polish from the Rock Shed an will order grit as current supplies get low. |
|
|
|
Post by velodromed on Aug 21, 2023 17:10:08 GMT -5
Check out the rock shed and Kingsley north for grit and polish, you’ll get better results. I tried so many different Amazon and cheap grits with poor results before I tried the better ones. A 7v, 1a is even slower, but it seemed too slow. I saw, that, or one similar to it, I did get a variable power supply for the broken one, I will try that at about 9v before bypassing the circuit board. I also found on this forum what the flashing lights mean and what to look for other than an overloaded barrel, it turns out that the broken tumbler had a burr on both of the pulleys so I took an emery board to it to smooth it out. I also ordered some replacement belts and they seem to fit better than the two belts that came with the tumbler. I already ordered 3lb of Aluminum Oxide Polish from the Rock Shed a will order grit as current supplies get low. Good idea, cover all possibilities before cracking it open. On mine, it had a barrel leak and burned out the control board, completely dying. So there was no other option. |
|
dillonf
fully equipped rock polisher
Hounding and tumbling
Member since February 2022
Posts: 1,622
|
Post by dillonf on Aug 21, 2023 19:19:20 GMT -5
Got some cool stuff in there.
My first go with a nat geo tumbler went the same as yours!! If you get it to slow down a bit you will get some good use out of that tumbler!
|
|
|
|
Post by velodromed on Aug 21, 2023 19:31:59 GMT -5
Check out the rock shed and Kingsley north for grit and polish, you’ll get better results. I tried so many different Amazon and cheap grits with poor results before I tried the better ones. A 7v, 1a is even slower, but it seemed too slow. I saw, that, or one similar to it, I did get a variable power supply for the broken one, I will try that at about 9v before bypassing the circuit board. I also found on this forum what the flashing lights mean and what to look for other than an overloaded barrel, it turns out that the broken tumbler had a burr on both of the pulleys so I took an emery board to it to smooth it out. I also ordered some replacement belts and they seem to fit better than the two belts that came with the tumbler. I already ordered 3lb of Aluminum Oxide Polish from the Rock Shed a will order grit as current supplies get low. Three pounds of polish will last you quite awhile. Typically it’s the course grit you’ll go through most. For example, I’ve gone through over 15lbs of course in the last 7-8 months, around a pound of the 2-3 stage grits each and not even 1/2 a pound of polish. The AO grit does not break down to nothing like SiC. It continues to work even down at the sub micron level. When polishing in a rotary, I’ll load it once with 500 AO and let it run for a couple weeks or more. If it still needs more polishing I have 2-3 micron AO that I’ll use. It takes hardly any to work, like 1/2-1 teaspoon. In my vibe it only takes 1/4 teaspoon. Vibes are really efficient with grits and polish I’ve found. |
|
|
|
Post by jasoninsd on Aug 21, 2023 19:48:26 GMT -5
Well, you are definitely well on your way to being completely hooked on this "hobby"!  |
|
skmcconnell361
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since August 2023
Posts: 125
|
Post by skmcconnell361 on Aug 21, 2023 19:55:29 GMT -5
Got some cool stuff in there. My first go with a nat geo tumbler went the same as yours!! If you get it to slow down a bit you will get some good use out of that tumbler! I will let you know in a bit if the variable voltage P/S does the trick Getting ready to start the second batch this evening. Well that did not work the circuit board seems to be fried. I will bypass the circuit board tomorrow and connect the motor directly to the P/S |
|
skmcconnell361
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since August 2023
Posts: 125
|
Post by skmcconnell361 on Aug 22, 2023 10:14:19 GMT -5
I went ahead and got the second starter batch on the replacement tumbler, hopefully, I learned a bit from the first go with this tumbler. I added ceramic pellets to fill the barrel to slightly less than two-thirds full in the one-pound barrel. With the barrel 3 inches deep, a one-inch dowel scrap came in handy. I will check on the batch in 5 days because Nat Geo tumblers turn twice as fast as most others. Also, I will have the modified tumbler ready to go then also.
I think that the slower tumble rate of the Harbor Freight in the step 4 polishing stage helped me get the results I got. I am using this second go to refine the steps in the process now that I have extra grit on hand.
|
|
|
|
Post by Starguy on Aug 22, 2023 10:48:47 GMT -5
For your first batch I’d have to say those turned out really nice. Well done.
|
|
michiganpebbler
spending too much on rocks
Member since April 2023
Posts: 344 
|
Post by michiganpebbler on Aug 22, 2023 12:16:00 GMT -5
|
|
|
|
Post by velodromed on Aug 30, 2023 15:11:55 GMT -5
Got some cool stuff in there. My first go with a nat geo tumbler went the same as yours!! If you get it to slow down a bit you will get some good use out of that tumbler! I will let you know in a bit if the variable voltage P/S does the trick Getting ready to start the second batch this evening. Well that did not work the circuit board seems to be fried. I will bypass the circuit board tomorrow and connect the motor directly to the P/S Did you have luck rewiring the old tumbler and getting it running? |
|
skmcconnell361
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since August 2023
Posts: 125
|
Post by skmcconnell361 on Aug 30, 2023 17:41:33 GMT -5
I will let you know in a bit if the variable voltage P/S does the trick Getting ready to start the second batch this evening. Well that did not work the circuit board seems to be fried. I will bypass the circuit board tomorrow and connect the motor directly to the P/S Did you have luck rewiring the old tumbler and getting it running? Yes I did, using the variable voltage power supply I can match the speed of the Harbor Freight tumbler pretty close. Next I will see if the new tumbler will handle the 2 pound barrels. I am confident the modified one will but not sure the Hobby Tumbler will or not. It only comes with a 1 pound barrel. I like the flat segments in the Nat Geo/Dr Cool barrels over the smooth surface in the Harbor Freight barrels. I think it helps encourage better tumbling action. |
|
skmcconnell361
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since August 2023
Posts: 125
|
Post by skmcconnell361 on Aug 31, 2023 20:51:13 GMT -5
Second tumble not going so well, the slurry is a thick foam.  These are after second 5 days of tumbling in the National Geographic Hobby Tumbler (the New one to replace the one that failed two weeks ago)  I was hoping that the ceramic media would help cushion the softer stones, don't think that workout so well. The Pink and Green stones look pretty beat up and bruised already  Keeping the stones wet till I decide how to proceed from here. |
|
|
|
Post by jasoninsd on Aug 31, 2023 21:40:32 GMT -5
Maybe I'm looking at that picture wrong...but that looks like WAY too much water. Maybe I'm not seeing it right...
|
|
|
|
Post by velodromed on Aug 31, 2023 22:57:35 GMT -5
Maybe I'm looking at that picture wrong...but that looks like WAY too much water. Maybe I'm not seeing it right... I agree, too much water and not enough cushion. Can tell by the slurry color, it looks the consistency of no fat milk. With so much water it’s preventing is a slurry to form. A good slurry is paramount for helping cushion rocks and also serves as a carrier for grit, so there’s more grinding action between rocks as they tumble. Same with having enough cushioning in there, it’s important to have enough cushioning in those digital tumblers that have multiple speeds. Even their slowest speed is well more than twice faster than the recommended 20rpm for tumbling. It’s good for breaking down really rough rock around the edges, but in latter stages it will cost damage. That’s why I took another guy’s advice on here and bought a lower power source for it. I swapped out the 12V, 1amp power supply with a 7.5 V, 1a power supply for seven bucks on Amazon. I can post you the link if you want, I haven’t all already. I actually recycle the slurry in my barrels between clean outs during course stages. I put everything out into a Strainer/bucket combo, pour a little bit of the old slurry back into the barrel, being careful not to get it on the lid rim and also making sure I get any grit still left back in. I’ll do this as long as the rocks are in the course stage and the slurry is not too stinky. Once it smells bad, I get rid of it and start over. People on here have use dried local clay to help build up a slurry fast. Another one is metemucil (psylliupsyllium fiber), the kind without sugar. Those are supposed to make up a good slurry. I haven’t tried yet, but will someday. I have heard you need to be careful about pressure building up in the barrel when using organic material to build a slurry though, it’s enough to blow off the lid. So will have to take care there and check the barrel often. I just saw your comment about too much foam. Invert people recommend a teaspoon of vinegar, bleach and I’m actually going to try a simethicone gas preventer build up pill next time I have the issue. I know foam occurs from organic action. Sometimes it’s the rocks release some gas sometimes it’s mud or contaminants on the rocks causing it. Whatever the case may be. It’s a good time to experiment. Experimenting is my favorite part of this hobby. |
|
skmcconnell361
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since August 2023
Posts: 125
|
Post by skmcconnell361 on Sept 1, 2023 5:56:31 GMT -5
Maybe I'm looking at that picture wrong...but that looks like WAY too much water. Maybe I'm not seeing it right... Sorry I forgot to take a picture after I opened the barrel, the picture above is after I finished washing out the barrel and the rocks. |
|
skmcconnell361
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since August 2023
Posts: 125
|
Post by skmcconnell361 on Sept 1, 2023 6:41:13 GMT -5
After sleeping on it overnight, I think I will pull out the Dalmation, Aventurine, and Rose Quartz. Set them aside for now and see if I can piece enough of those from the two Nat Geo Gemstone refill boxes for a round in my modified Nat Geo tumbler. I can get it down to about 30 or so RPM. I think a couple other pieces are ready for stage 2 also but I will keep the tiny pieces going as filler and mix any of those in with my ceramics down the road.
|
|
|
|
Post by velodromed on Sept 1, 2023 15:53:39 GMT -5
After sleeping on it overnight, I think I will pull out the Dalmation, Aventurine, and Rose Quartz. Set them aside for now and see if I can piece enough of those from the two Nat Geo Gemstone refill boxes for a round in my modified Nat Geo tumbler. I can get it down to about 30 or so RPM. I think a couple other pieces are ready for stage 2 also but I will keep the tiny pieces going as filler and mix any of those in with my ceramics down the road. Dalmatian you can keep in. Quartz, no. Pull it. Just because the rocks have similar Mohs hardness doesn’t mean they’re similar toughness. Quartz cracks bruises and breaks easy. Just because the rocks have similar Mohs hardness doesn’t mean they’re similar toughness. Agate and jaspers and cherts, which anre all children of quartz, are really tough. Has to do with the interlocking structure of the way the silica Crystals lock. |
|
|
|
Post by velodromed on Sept 1, 2023 16:04:24 GMT -5
@askmcconnell361
Oh, the aventurine should be pulled like you said. Also pull the tigers eye, which is of the quartz family with feldspar and iron oxide or ore, some are magnetic in fact using a good strong magnet, and the blue rock, the name escaping me cause my brains mush. Lapis lazuli perhaps. All three of thes rocks are relatively soft but I think they’ll tumble together with plenty of ceramics or small agate/jaspers. Watch the quartz closely though
|
|
